EA announces reboot of cyberpunk classic, Syndicate

Following months of speculation, EA has finally come clean about its upcoming reboot to the cyberpunk classic, Syndicate. Originally launched in 1993 as an real-time tactical game, the title is being repackaged as a sci-fi first-person shooter and will land sometime early next year on PC, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. PC hardware requirements haven't surfaced yet and they probably won't until a few weeks or months before the launch.

The title is set in 2069 when mega-corporations called Syndicates have supplanted the world's governments and the masses have accepted a neural chip implant required for housing, banking, education, entertainment, jobs, medical and insurance. With such central power over the lives of consumers, the Syndicates are constantly vying for control of market dominance. "Business has become war," says EA's description.

Players will experience the story through EuroCorp's prototype agent, Miles Kilo, who embarks on a "brutal action adventure of corruption and revenge." Based on the details we've seen, you'll have a bio-tech augmentation chip called DART6 that lets you slow time and see through walls. Between the bio-mechanical elements and cyberpunk sci-fi style, the new entry sounds a lot like the recently released Deus Ex: Human Revolution.

In fact, some fans of the original are upset about the FPS reboot. As noted, the original title was an isometric tactical shooter that was more about strategy than headshots and critics are concerned the game won't remain true to its roots. One of EA's bullet points describes a "visceral FPS experience." Another mentions that the game's four-player online co-op will have nine missions that are "reimagined from the original Syndicate."

For whatever it's worth, the title is being developed by Starbreeze Studios, the folks behind The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay and Assault on Dark Athena. Although those games weren't hugely popular, they were praised for their diverse gameplay, which incorporated aspects of stealth and meticulously-paced action. If that's any indication, we wouldn't worry about Syndicate being a mindless corridor shooter.